The present invention relates to a portable electronic device which displays information stored on a CD ROM disc. The unit is battery powered and would allow the user to read a book by pressing a button which would display the next screen of text or images. The screen would be of a type which would permit viewing in any type of lighting environment.
Many individuals carry books with them, especially paperback books, to read during idle periods, such as when riding a subway or bus. Many paperback books require two hands to hold the pages open while reading. Also, the printing can be small or of poor quality detracting from the content of the material.
In addition, when the book is completed, it may remain in an open fanned condition. Such a condition makes it difficult to store the paperback because of its unsightliness. Also, paperback books come in all different sizes making it difficult to store large numbers of them.
A similar problem of wear and tear occurs with text books that are loaned to students for a semester. The texts are written in, pages may be missing, and the student may be distracted by these irregularities. Although hard cover textbooks generally are more durable, they are heavy and tend to be much larger than paperback books. This can create a problem for students who need to carry many books back and forth to school each day.
Although hard cover books overcome some of the deficiencies of paperback books, they tend to cost much more and are too bulky to carry around. The present invention solves the problem of having to carry a large number of books by providing a video display which can view a number of texts using a plurality of light weight CD ROM discs.